importantly, WHY do they want it? It’s simple, if they know
where they are headed in life for themselves and friends
and family, and they have powerful reasons WHY they must
get there, they’ll get there, but it’s going to come down to
having a powerful WHY.
Once you know their vision and why they must achieve
it, it’s your job to show them how their daily activities are
getting them closer to the “vision” and how a lack of activity
takes them in the other direction. Let them know you
care about them, support them, and you want them to be
successful. Finally, continue to tie daily activity to what they
want most and remind them that they can have anything
they want if they’re willing to work for it.
W
set standards and
hold them accountable
This step is the one that is most often ignored by leaders
of sales teams. It is imperative that you set standards for
sales activity and hold everyone accountable. With newer
salespeople you need to watch activity more closely until
they are on track with good, sound habits. With your top
performers and veterans, you can and should be more
hands off. Each salesperson needs to have reasonable but
challenging goals. They should be pushed out of their
comfort zone but they have to believe they can do what
you’re asking of them.
Again, you must hold each salesperson accountable. No one
gets a buy here. If a salesperson is not hitting their numbers,
you need to find out why. Is it a skillset or attitude issue? If
it’s a skillset issue, do what you need to do to help them to
develop the skills they need. If they can’t or won’t develop
the necessary skills, you’re eventually going to need to let
them go. If, on the other hand, they have the skills but are
simply not doing the necessary activities, while you can start
with the “nice” velvet-glove approach, you more than likely
will need to use the iron fist and introduce the “fear” of
losing their job if they don’t do what needs to be done. If
at this point they continue to miss their numbers and skirt
the necessary work, put your foot down and move them out
the door. Keeping underperformers around will kill morale,
cause major headaches, and at the end of the day, you’re
not doing yourself or them any favors. You’re running a
business, not a charity or psych ward.
John Chapin is an award-winning sales speaker, trainer and coach. You may reach
him at 508-243-7359, [email protected] or www.completeselling.com.
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|March-April 2015| KANSAS INSURANCE AGENT & BROKER
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